Reports of the “death” of the blueprint by Dr. Joseph E. Johnson for settlement of the Palestine Arab refugee problem are exaggerated, and the spirit of the proposals remain very much alive, State Department sources said today. Indeed, a formula is being sought to implement the mandate of the United Nations Palestine Conciliation Commission with which Dr. Johnson was entrusted, it was revealed.
The United States, a member of the PCC along with France and Turkey, still sees the Arab refugee problem as a priority matter and the leading unresolved irritant in Arab-Israel relations, Some United States diplomats are convinced that, if confronted with an option, most Arab refugees would elect not to return to territory now a part of Israel.
It was stressed here that no final decision has been taken regarding the Johnson proposals. As far as America is concerned, the Johnson refugee undertaking is a continuing operation, State Department sources said. They felt that Dr. Johnson’s mandate had not yet been suitably discharged, and that work to achieve an acceptable solution lies ahead. As far as America is concerned, the Johnson proposals are a “continuing operation.” The importance of the PCC mandate on Arab refugee settlement to the peace and security of the Near East was emphasized.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
